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Others may (will) see it differently, and obviously it depends on context - different things need different presentations - but I can't stand when people have t

Others may (will) see it differently, and obviously it depends on context - different things need different presentations - but I can't stand when people have text slides. You are already talking - seeing exactly what you say or the gist of it in text makes one of the two superfluous. Just yesterday I watched a JSConf presentation that I actually ended up sharing that I still found infuriating for the first 7 minutes: The speaker said exactly the sentence (plus verbal decorations, meaning no additional content, just more words) that he also showed on slides. A new slide, a new sentence. (This is the one: "Emanuel Kluge: Go Offline with Service Workers - JSUnconf 2016" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou6oPEEyjNQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou6oPEEyjNQ) I think a lot of presentations would gain a lot if the power went out. Imagine yourself in a round of people and you explain your idea to them. While common the handling of your smartphone or laptop during a conversation or explanation often is much more of a distraction than useful. Obviously there are plenty of examples where you do need them when you want to show something concrete like code or the thing you are talking about (unless it's a common object everybody already knows), but especially "idea and concept presentations" often are better off without the visuals. And please don't add jokes just because you heard that you should. I try to create a presentation by using "just me". And then only add other stuff if it's really necessary.

zserge 10y ago
Thanks, I understand your point, and I sincerely don't want it to become a thread of infinite disagreement. But text slides can be helpful. I often use just text. I rarely use images (no kittens or meme picures, images are good only if they really illustrate what you're saying). My slides are just text, lists and short code blocks. (for the company meetings I use whiteboard instead of slides more and more often. I illustrate what I speak about in real time and keep people's attention. And I illustrate only when I see people don't follow my words). People are good creatures, but we are so easily distracted. If someone missed what I just said and I have text slides - he may look at a slide and get the idea. Also, people are bad a multitasking. If you are saying one thing and slide describes something additional or even different - people will lose their focus. If your audience could close their eyes and not fell asleep - they would be able to get 100% of what you are telling them. But they keep their eyes open. Their eyes focus on you, or their neighbors in the audience, on their phone screens or watches etc. It distracts. Having large, short, clear slides keeps their focus on what you're saying. So right, it all depends on the audience, how they are interested in your presentation topic and how well you perform on the stage.
Nullabillity 10y ago
I find text slides to be frustrating when listening, but that's mostly because it highlights how mind-bogglingly slowly they're usually talking. Also, I find it invaluable to have the slides able to stand on their own if I need to go back or missed the presentation. Even if the presentation was recorded (which doesn't seem to be the case, typically) in high quality (which seems to be even more rare), I find it much easier to just skim through the parts of the text that I care about.
extra88 10y ago
I agree that presenters should put most of their effort into their verbal presentation. But also having the essence of what's being said displayed as text is a good enhancement. Comprehension and retention is improved when information is conveyed in multiple forms (e.g. audibly and visually). The combination can be particularly useful when the presentation is not in the audience member's first language. Also in the video you linked to, the presenter was speaking and displaying English which is not his first language and while he's quite fluent, his accent might be a barrier to some in the audience, one that may be overcome by displaying the essential points. The text can also help the hard-of-hearing.
ThenAsNow 10y ago
This seems like an opportune moment to suggest technical presenters take a look at Prof. Shewchuk's missive: http://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~jrs/speaking.html http://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~jrs/speaking.html I'm in no way affiliated with him, just found his rant online. I think his points apply to a lot of technical presentations (though certainly not all). Another helpful resource is "The Craft of Scientific Presentations": http://www.amazon.com/Craft-Scientific-Presentations-Critical-Succeed/dp/1441982787/ http://www.amazon.com/Craft-Scientific-Presentations-Critica... The bottom line is that the tool itself is probably less relevant than we think it is, though I agree with Tufte that text-intensive Powerpoint is great way to do your critical points grave disservice.

zserge 10y ago

Thanks, I understand your point, and I sincerely don't want it to become a thread of infinite disagreement. But text slides can be helpful. I often use just text. I rarely use images (no kittens or meme picures, images are good only if they really illustrate what you're saying). My slides are just text, lists and short code blocks. (for the company meetings I use whiteboard instead of slides more and more often. I illustrate what I speak about in real time and keep people's attention. And I illustrate only when I see people don't follow my words). People are good creatures, but we are so easily distracted. If someone missed what I just said and I have text slides - he may look at a slide and get the idea. Also, people are bad a multitasking. If you are saying one thing and slide describes something additional or even different - people will lose their focus. If your audience could close their eyes and not fell asleep - they would be able to get 100% of what you are telling them. But they keep their eyes open. Their eyes focus on you, or their neighbors in the audience, on their phone screens or watches etc. It distracts. Having large, short, clear slides keeps their focus on what you're saying. So right, it all depends on the audience, how they are interested in your presentation topic and how well you perform on the stage.

Nullabillity 10y ago

I find text slides to be frustrating when listening, but that's mostly because it highlights how mind-bogglingly slowly they're usually talking. Also, I find it invaluable to have the slides able to stand on their own if I need to go back or missed the presentation. Even if the presentation was recorded (which doesn't seem to be the case, typically) in high quality (which seems to be even more rare), I find it much easier to just skim through the parts of the text that I care about.

extra88 10y ago

I agree that presenters should put most of their effort into their verbal presentation. But also having the essence of what's being said displayed as text is a good enhancement. Comprehension and retention is improved when information is conveyed in multiple forms (e.g. audibly and visually). The combination can be particularly useful when the presentation is not in the audience member's first language. Also in the video you linked to, the presenter was speaking and displaying English which is not his first language and while he's quite fluent, his accent might be a barrier to some in the audience, one that may be overcome by displaying the essential points. The text can also help the hard-of-hearing.

ThenAsNow 10y ago

This seems like an opportune moment to suggest technical presenters take a look at Prof. Shewchuk's missive: http://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~jrs/speaking.html http://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~jrs/speaking.html I'm in no way affiliated with him, just found his rant online. I think his points apply to a lot of technical presentations (though certainly not all). Another helpful resource is "The Craft of Scientific Presentations": http://www.amazon.com/Craft-Scientific-Presentations-Critical-Succeed/dp/1441982787/ http://www.amazon.com/Craft-Scientific-Presentations-Critica... The bottom line is that the tool itself is probably less relevant than we think it is, though I agree with Tufte that text-intensive Powerpoint is great way to do your critical points grave disservice.